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Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso

Instituto de Literatura y Ciencias del Lenguaje

The influence of David Bowie in other artists’ conceptualizations. An elective workshop for freshmen students

TRABAJO DE TITULACIÓN Para optar al grado de Licenciado en Educación y al Título de Profesor de Inglés

Alumna: Josefa Jaramillo Geeregat

Profesor: Ricardo Benitez Figari

Segundo semestre 2016

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INTRODUCTION

Every language is part of a culture, so in language teaching, it

is highly important to emphasize that there is more to learn

than just the language itself; instead, every cultural aspect of

each culture plays a role when teaching someone how to

communicate in a foreign language. There is a context that must

be understood by the learners in order for them to communicate

accurately in another language: the culture alongside the

language.

As cited by Moran (2001), “Culture is viewed as civilization,

the great achievements of a people as reflected in their

history, social, institutions, works of art, architecture, music

and literature -- commonly referred to as “big C” culture.

Culture is also referred to as the customs, traditions, or

practices that people carry out as part of their everyday lives

-- “small c” culture” (Halverson, 1985). Culture is more than a

language. It involves history, groups of people, art,

relationships, and ways of living, among others. And it becomes

quite relevant when the focus is to teach a language, as there

are many factors that make the language the way it is and that

make the language be used in a certain way.

In order to explain what culture is, a possible approach can be

made between one’s own culture and another one by explaining

their similarities and differences. Brown (1991) mentions that

culture can be examined in biological or psychological matters,

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and Moran (2001:5), regarding this view, says that “many aspects

are seen as universal to all members of humankind; derived from

the nature and functions of the human brain. These universals as

in language, music, or in the universal facial expressions

associated with emotions are the shared basis of communication

across cultures.” Taking this into consideration, it can be said

that talking about something that is universal and reaches most

people, could be a bridge that links language and knowledge, as

feelings and emotions are part of what makes us interested in

something. Following this idea, if students feel a connection to

a certain topic, and there is interest in knowing more, it would

bring motivation to participate in the activities they are part

of during a workshop.

Following the same reasoning, a possible approach to teaching

students about a particular topic is to begin with something

that evokes feelings and emotions, something that goes beyond

cultures despite its origins, and one of the things that fulfill

those requirements is a topic related to an influential

musician.

The present graduation project consists of a pedagogical

proposal that develops an elective workshop in which students

can learn about the English culture and language through a topic

that covers not only the history of the iconic British artist

David Bowie, but also about his influence in other artists’

conceptualizations. The objective of this workshop is that

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students can distinguish the influence of David Bowie in

different aspects of culture.

Culture through icons

Culture, as explained by Moran (2001), is built by different

communities, or small groups of people that share beliefs,

interests, etc. And it can -at the same time- influence people

from other communities and can invite them to share and to be

part of their groups.

Artists have a community that often transcends aspects such as

time and place, as art remains in the memory of society and can

be appreciated by different generations. Also, artists invite

people from all over the world to enjoy their work and to share

it.

In the music sphere, many musicians have achieved the ultimate

goal they yearn for: to become influential in other artists, as

well as to move the audience and to make them feel identified

with their music. In other words, to become an icon.

The influence that some icons have had in cultural aspects has

been enormous; they can clearly have an effect on people’s ideas

and behavior, all of these produced by the artistic proposal

that artists have brought forward during their careers.

In this workshop students will be able to understand how an

iconic musician such as David Bowie was able to transcend

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through generations of people and artists not only in the UK,

but all over the world. For example, as Time magazine states in

its article “4 Ways David Bowie Influenced Musicians Today”, there

are notorious influences of Bowie’s conceptualizations of

androgyny and sexuality, ever-changing image, theatricality, and

sci-fi spirit in the pop star Lady Gaga, Adam Lambert, St.

Vincent and Janelle Monáe. Also, Andre Trendell and Ashley Clement

mentioned in Gigwise, a British online music news site, in its

article “RIP David Bowie” other 29 artists who were influenced

not only in musical aspects, but also in the conceptualizations

of the artist, and described Bowie as “A master of all forms,

his music and attitude broke barriers, set the agenda and both

defined and defied genres. So much of the musical landscape

looks as it does because of him, and pop would not be the same

if it weren’t for The Thin White Duke. It stands to reason that

he influenced and inspired countless artists.”

In terms of cultural aspects, not only is his influence as an

artist worth teaching, but also his life and way to live, as

mentioned in The Independent “David Bowie was the most

influential British pop artist ever and personified our culture

throughout his life”, so it can be said that there is more for

students to learn about British culture in David Bowie than just

about his alter egos and musical influence, instead, there are

cultural aspects of the British culture in his history and

behavior.

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There are certainly many aspects in which David Bowie also

influenced and impregnated his new concepts and ideas in his

audience. Topics like sexuality and being different were remarkably

addressed during his career. As accurately described by The

Independent “He was weird, and weird was good. He constantly

experimented with identities and made it all right for teenagers

to experiment too. Partly because of him, young people found

they could be liberated as much by being different as by being

part of the group. His fans often discovered his music as an

intensely personal experience but knew, as he put it in

“Rock’n’roll Suicide”, that they were “not alone.” His influence

again, is not only restrained to his music, or the way he lived

his life, but also in the way he managed to persuade the

audience with his lyrics and to make a change in people’s life

and ways of thinking, even in non-English-speaking countries

where people still perceive his music as meaningful, and in

countries where the cultural differences with Bowie’s culture

are significant, he has had the opportunity to influence people.

David Bowie was such an influential artist that has had an

impact not only on other musicians, but also on artists in

general: painters, actors, among others, who have said that

their musical styles or sources of inspiration come from David

Bowie; therefore, his relevance for cultural matters is worth

being taught, especially for people who are learning a different

culture and language. Bowie’s lyrics and artistic proposals can

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reflect much about what people in different decades have lived

and experienced.

The objective of this workshop is that students can learn about

the characteristics of a musical icon, the relevance of an

artist through different generations of people around the world

and the influences of a musical icon in cultural features such

as the musical scene.

This workshop has been designed for freshmen students because

among the contents they cover at this school grade, there is a

unit called “Music and Literature” in which the objective is for

them to learn about different musical and literary genres, to

learn about iconic pieces of art, musicians and books, as well

as to assess and appreciate the value of music and literature

and to develop respect for the role of music and literature as a

means of communication.

The text book “Teens Club” provided by the MINEDUC contains four

units, but it must be mentioned that not all of the contents of

the book are aligned with the contents in the “Planes y

Programas”; therefore, the ministry of education plans and

programs for this school grade differ mostly in terms of topics

with the books provided to schools.

Freshmen students are likely to get interested in topics related

to art, and particularly music, so it is an engaging workshop in

which they will be able to work on their communicative skills

through the realization of several activities; to be aware of

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the influence iconic musicians can have in cultural aspects; and

to understand the importance of learning about a culture in

order to learn about a language. As the Chilean curricula for

the subject of English covers topics of art and music

superficially, this workshop is a great opportunity for freshmen

students to incorporate new concepts related to the topic of

music and icons by learning about an iconic member of the

artistic world.

The Syllabus

For this workshop, the most suitable type of syllabus is a

content-based syllabus, for two reasons: students learn the

language through the learning of the subject and that learners

can understand and value the culture behind the language, which

is the main focus of this graduation project.

As mentioned by Jalilzadeh and Tahmasebi (2014) “Krashen

suggests that a second language is most successfully acquired

when the conditions are similar to those present in first

language acquisition: that is, when the focus of instruction is

on meaning rather than on form; when the language input is at or

just above the proficiency of the learner; and when there is

sufficient opportunity to engage in meaningful use of that

language in a relatively anxiety-free environment.” In this

case, a content-based syllabus would provide the students with

the conditions necessary to develop their critical thinking

skills and English skills at the same time.

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A communicative approach is mostly needed in this syllabus,

because the main linguistic objective is that students develop

the capacity to communicate their ideas and thoughts clearly in

the target language, rather than the capacity to focus on

grammatical functions. In order to achieve this purpose, the

activities contained in the syllabus follow a task-base model,

so students will carry out specific tasks and projects that will

help them use the target language in specific situations.

In this workshop, students will distinguish the characteristics

of an icon and understand how influential an icon can be when it

comes to cultural matters. Students will be part of this

engaging immersion in David Bowie’s life and music, as well as

his impact on the musical scenario, by being active participants

in the activities designed for this workshop. They will work

collaboratively, reflect on the topics of the workshop and

develop their critical thinking abilities. Therefore, this

content-based syllabus with its focus on communicative learning

approaches that will facilitate the learning of the students

through sharing ideas and discussing the topics in groups. They

will not only be able to learn about the influence of David

Bowie, but also they will have the opportunity to find an

example of an iconic artist in their own culture, so they will

use the knowledge provided in this workshop and put it into

practice.

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Students will be encouraged to be active participants during the

workshop with the objective of making them think critically and

independently.

Needs Analysis

In order to analyze students’ needs and to check the viability

of this workshop, a questionnaire designed for 9th graders was

conducted with the purpose to set clear objectives for this

workshop. The questionnaire was answered by twenty freshmen high

school students at Colegio Agustin Edwards in Valparaiso. All

the students enthusiastically participated, despite the fact

that the level of English of some students is quite low.

The questionnaire consisted of sixteen questions about the type

of activities students preferred, interest in the topic of the

workshop, and interest in the subject. Regarding student

motivation towards the subject (see Appendix 2, Question 2),

most students expressed a rather positive answer.

As this workshop is closely related to art, in particularly

music in English, students where asked whether they like

listening to music in English (see Appendix 2, Question 4), and

more than half of the group answered positively. This

information is very helpful, as part of the activities in this

workshop is related to listening to songs, as well as other

listening activities, in which listening to someone speaking in

English would be easier and engaging for those who like to

listen to music in English.

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One of the important questions that needed to be asked, as this

workshop is particularly referred to David Bowie, was whether

they know David Bowie (see Appendix 2, Question 7) and

fortunately, students had heard of him before, so the viability

increased thanks to the fact that the students, despite the age

factor, are aware of the existence of this iconic artist.

In order to specifically address the possibility of teaching

this topic to freshmen students they were asked whether it was

interesting for them to learn about the life of an iconic artist

(see Appendix 2, Question 15), and students express interest in

learning about it with a relatively high percentage of positive

answers.

As most Chilean students only learn about basic aspects of a

foreign culture during their school years, it is clearly

demonstrated that topics that go beyond their understanding of

culture will always be well received by them, and it would be

extremely meaningful for both students and teacher, as it could

be a new experience and a new approach to teaching and learning

about culture.

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References

Moran, P. (2001). Teaching Culture: Perspectives in Practice.

Massachusetts, USA.

Jalilzadeh, K., & Tahmasebi, A. (2014, September). Content-based syllabus. European Scientific Journal, 1, 224. Brown, H.D. (1991).Human Universals. New York: McGraw-Hill. Halverson, R.J. (1985). Culture and vocabulary acquisition: A proposal. Foreign language Annals Trendell. A., Clement. A. (2016) RIP David Bowie. Gigwise Online Magazine. http://www.gigwise.com/photos/104910/rip-david-bowie---artists-he-inspired-influenced-killers-nirvana Feeney, N. (2016). 4 ways David Bowie Influenced Musicians Today. Time Magazine http://time.com/4175766/david-bowie-influence-legacy/ Editorial. (2016). Voices. The Independent. http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/david-bowie-was-the-most-influential-british-pop-artist-ever-and-personified-our-culture-throughout-a6806771.html Grant, J. (2016). Rock Icon, David Bowie Changed the face of Music. People Magazine. http://teachingkidsnews.com/2016/01/17/rock-icon-david-bowie/

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The Straight Dope. (2016). Was Major Tom the Astronaut a Real Person. http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1517/was-major-tom-the-astronaut-a-real-person Songmango. (2016). Space Oddity (Major Tom) http://songmango.com/space-oddity-ground-control-major-tom-by-david-bowie-review/ David Bowie - Space Oddity https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cYMCLz5PQVw Grant, J. (2016). David Bowie`s influence on other artists. People Magazine. http://people.com/celebrity/david-bowies-influence-on-other-artists/lcd-soundsystem/

COURSE SYLLABUS

Type of course: Elective workshop

Duration: 17 lessons

Audience: Freshmen students

Class hours: 90 minutes per session

Rationale

“The influence of David Bowie in other artists’

conceptualizations” is an elective workshop designed for Chilean

9th graders. The purpose of this workshop is to teach students

about the influence of David Bowie in various generations of

artists, as well as teaching about the importance of an iconic

artist in cultural matters. The syllabus is divided into 3

units, each of which contains 4-7 lessons. The first unit “Who

is David Bowie?” is divided into 5 lessons, in which students

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will learn about David Bowie’s life and origins, as well as some

background information about history and music at the time he

became an artist. The second unit “What did he do?” is divided

into 7 lessons, in which the topics covered are his musical

career and alter egos, as well as work his in other areas such

as acting. The third and last unit “Art after Bowie” is divided

into 4 lessons, in which the students will understand the

influence of David Bowie in other artists.

Course Objectives

General Objective By the end of this workshop

students will be able to

distinguish the influence of

David Bowie in different

aspects of culture.

Unit 1: Who is David Bowie? Objective: Discover the origins of David Bowie; his life and social context

Lesson 1: The life of David Robert Jones

Objective: Recognize important aspects of David Bowie’s early life and social context

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Lesson 2: The origins of David Bowie as an artist

Objective: Identify the aspects that made David Robert Jones become David Bowie

Lesson 3: Music before Bowie Objective: Describe the musical scenario previous to David Bowie

Lesson 4: David Bowie's musical style

Objective: Define David Bowie’s musical styles

Lesson 5: Unit Evaluation Informative poster

This evaluation is based on the design of a poster that must include information regarding the social context in which David Bowie started his career and information about his early life.

Unit 2: What did Bowie do? Objective: Examine David Bowie's career through his alter egos and work.

Lesson 1: Meet Hunky Dory Objective. Discover David Bowie’s first pieces of work and alter ego

Lesson 2: Meet Ziggy Stardust Objective: Investigate about David Bowie’s alter ego “Ziggy Stardust”

Lesson 3: Meet Major Tom Objective: Describe the most important features of this character

Lesson 4: Meet the Thin White Duke

Objective: Compare the characteristics of David Bowie’s alter egos

Lesson 5: Meet the actor Objective: Discuss David Bowie’s acting career

Lesson 6: Friends and collaborations

Objective: Explain the importance of David Bowie’s musical collaborations

Lesson 7: Unit evaluation Role-play

This evaluation is based on a role-play where two of David Bowie’s alter egos meet and talk about their contributions.

Unit 3: Art After Bowie Objective: Explore David Bowie’s influence in art

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Evaluation Criteria

Evaluation Unit 1: Poster activity (30%)

Evaluation Unit 2: Role-play activity (30%)

Evaluation Unit 3: Oral presentation (30%)

Self-evaluation (10%)

Lesson 1: The rise of the icon Objective: Distinguish the aspects that made David Bowie become an icon.

Lesson 2: The influence in music

Objective: Analyze David Bowie’s influence in music around the world

Lesson 3: The innovation in musical performances

Objective: Establish David Bowie’s contributions to the musical scene

Lesson 4: The impact in other artists

Lesson 5: Unit evaluation Oral presentation

This evaluation is based on an oral presentation in which students explain the importance of David Bowie in the musical scenario; contributions and influence, and compare his iconic figure to a Chilean musical icon.

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Rubrics

Poster rubric

CATEGORY 4 3 2 1

Required Elements

The poster includes all required elements as well as additional information.

All required elements are included on the poster.

All but 1 of the required elements are included on the poster.

Several required elements were missing.

Labels All items of importance on the poster are clearly labeled with labels that can be read from at least 3 feet away.

Almost all items of importance on the poster are clearly labeled with labels that can be read from at least 3 feet away.

Many items of importance on the poster are clearly labeled with labels that can be read from at least 3 feet away.

Labels are too small to view OR no important items were labeled.

Graphics - Relevance

All graphics are related to the topic and make it easier to understand.

All graphics are related to the topic and most make it easier to understand.

All graphics relate to the topic.

Graphics do not relate to the topic.

Attractiveness The poster is exceptionally attractive in terms of design, layout, and neatness.

The poster is attractive in terms of design, layout, and neatness.

The poster is acceptably attractive though it may be a bit messy.

The poster is distractingly messy or very poorly designed. It is not attractive.

Grammar There are no grammatical/mechanical mistakes on the poster.

There are few grammatical/mechanical mistakes on the poster.

There are some grammatical/mechanical mistakes on the poster.

There are several grammatical/mechanical mistakes on the poster

Retrieved from http://www.uen.org/Lessonplan/downloadFile.cgi?file=12365-2-18725-Making_A_Poster_Rubric_1_.doc&filename=Making_A_Poster_Rubric_1_.doc

Role-play rubric

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Retrieved from

http://www.edu.gov.mb.ca/k12/cur/socstud/frame_found_sr2/g_blms/

g-17.pdf

Oral Presentation Rubric

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Excellent (4 points)

Good (3 points)

Needs Improvement (2 points)

Attempting (1 point)

Organization Student presents information in logical, interesting sequence which audience can follow.

Student presents information in a sequence which audience can follow.

Audience has difficulty following presentation because student jumps around.

Audience cannot understand presentation because there is no sequence of information.

Elocution Student uses a clear voice so all the audience can hear presentation.

Student's voice is clear and most of the audience can hear presentation.

Student's voice is low so the audience has difficulties hearing the presentation.

Student mumbles, and speaks too quietly for students in the back of class to hear.

Use of the language

Student uses the grammatical structures correctly most of the times and pronounces correctly most of the word.

Student makes only a few minor grammatical mistakes and mispronounces only a few words.

Student occasionally makes grammatical mistakes and mispronounces words.

Student makes frequent grammatical mistakes and mispronounces most of the words.

4.Self Evaluation

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Sample Lessons

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Getting started!

1. In pairs, discuss the following questions. Take notes if necessary. a) What do you think is an icon? b) According to what you know, what characteristics would make a person become

an icon? c) What do you think is the difference between an artist and an icon? 2. Share your answers with the class.

Before reading

1. Read the title of the article, what do you think it is about? 2. The first line of the article is a lyric from David Bowie’s famous song, Space

Oddity: “The stars look very different today.” Why do you think the journalist chose to begin the article with this lyric? What do you think it means?

Reading Activity

1. Read the article “Rock icon, David Bowie, changed the face of music”

2. Answer the following questions:

a) What important characteristics about David Bowie’s are mentioned in the text?

b) What aspects of his career do you think that made him become an icon? c) What do you think made Bowie different from other artists? d) In the text, they mention “Space oddity” as one of his most iconic songs,

why do you think the journalist says so?

3. Get together with a classmate and discuss your answers. After this we will check all the answers as a group.

After reading

1. Get together in groups. 2. Choose one of David Bowie’s song that you think it’s the most representative

and iconic of his career, the one song that made him become an icon. 3. Read the lyrics, watch the video clip or live performance, and think why that

particular song could be the one that made him become an iconic artist. You can take into consideration the lyrics, the performance, the musical style, etc.

4. Make a brief presentation and share it with the rest of the class.

Reading Activity Text

Unit 3 – Lesson 1 Objective: Distinguish the aspects that made David Bowie become an icon.

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ENTERTAINMENT, NEWS

Rock icon, David Bowie, changed the face of music

January 17, 2016 9:27 pm by Joyce Grant

David Bowie in 2002. Image: Photobra|Adam Bielawski

The stars look very different today.

David Bowie, one of the world’s most famous musical artists, has passed away at the age of 69, from cancer.

People around the world are mourning the death of a man who was a rock star, a pop star, an actor and someone many people would consider an all-around “creative genius.”

Bowie pushed the boundaries of every art form he touched—singing, movies, fashion, song writing. He was an avid reader and an intellectual. He applied his knowledge to his work, so that his songs—while many of them seem “normal” to us today as we look back on them—were always far ahead of what others were doing at the time.

Whatever Bowie did, he did with style. He was known for his outlandish fashion, often painting his face and styling his hair so he didn’t look like himself. His iconic tall, slim figure often lent itself to fashion that was gender-ambiguous; in other words, you often didn’t recognize him—or even known whether it was a man or a woman in the costume. In the 1970s, he assumed a personality known as the “Thin White Duke,” and sang in a style The Guardian calls “synthetic art-funk.” It was ahead of its time.

Contributing to Bowie’s often odd look, was the fact that his eyes were unusual and interesting. In 1962 when he was young, a boy punched him in the schoolyard, and the pupil (black part) of his left eye became permanently “dilated,” meaning that it was much bigger than that of the other eye. (Bowie remained close friends with the boy, who “later designed Bowie’s album artwork,” according to the British newspaper The

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Guardian. In fact, the boy was a member of Bowie’s first band, the Kon-rads, when Bowie was 15 years old.)

David Bowie’s real name was David Jones, but he changed it to David Bowie because he didn’t want to be confused with another major pop star of the time, Davy Jones, of The Monkees.

One of Bowie’s biggest songs is Space Oddity, which came out around the time of the Apollo 11 moon landing. The song was famously sung by former Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield—while Hadfield was flying above the Earth in the International Space Station.

Bowie had many other huge hits including Starman, The Man Who Sold the World, Jean Genie, Rebel Rebel, Ashes to Ashes, Fame and Under Pressure.

Perhaps the most fascinating thing about David Bowie was that you never knew what he was going to do next. His last music video, which was released in early January, shortly before his death, was called “Lazarus.” It was intended to be a “self-epitaph,”—a type of musical and artistic “good-bye” for his fans.

Retireved from http://teachingkidsnews.com/2016/01/17/rock-icon-david-bowie/

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Meet Major Tom – Story songs

Getting started!

1. In groups of 3, answer the following questions: a) Who do you think Major Tom is? b) Can you imagine what he does? c) Can you think of what inspired David Bowie to create this

character? 2. Share your answers with the class.

Listening & Reading activity

1. Listen to the song Space Oddity and read the lyrics. Try to figure out what the story is about.

2. Share your thoughts with a partner, see if there are similarities in the story you imagine. After this, share your story with the whole class.

3. Read the excerpts about the history of the character and check if your predictions were correct.

After Listening & Reading

1. In groups of 4, discuss the following questions: a) From the information given by David Bowie in the excerpt

of the interview, how did he come up with the character? b) Can you think of a relation between the character and

David Bowie? What would that be? c) Are there any connections to Bowie’s character Ziggy

Stardust? 2. Create wanted poster for the missing Major Tom. Make a

drawing of Major Tom and write a description of his appearance and personality, so people can easily recognize him if they have happen to see him.

Unit 2 – Lesson 3 Objective: Describe the most important features of the character Major Tom.

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SSPACE ODDITY BY DAVID BOWIE

Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cYMCLz5PQVw

Ground Control to Major Tom Ground Control to Major Tom

Take your protein pills and put your helmet on Ground Control to Major Tom (ten, nine, eight, seven, six)

Commencing countdown, engines on (five, four, three) Check ignition and may God's love be with you (two, one, liftoff)

This is Ground Control to Major Tom You've really made the grade

And the papers want to know whose shirts you wear Now it's time to leave the capsule if you dare

"This is Major Tom to Ground Control I'm stepping through the door

And I'm floating in a most peculiar way And the stars look very different today

For here Am I sitting in a tin can

Far above the world Planet Earth is blue

And there's nothing I can do

Though I'm past one hundred thousand miles I'm feeling very still

And I think my spaceship knows which way to go Tell my wife I love her very much she knows

Ground Control to Major Tom Your circuit's dead, there's something wrong

Can you hear me, Major Tom? Can you hear me, Major Tom? Can you hear me, Major Tom?

Can you "Here am I floating 'round my tin can far above the moon Planet Earth is blue

and there's nothing I can do"

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Autores de la canción: David Bowie Letra de Space Oddity © Peermusic Publishing

Was "Major Tom" the astronaut a real person?

Was there an actual Major Tom? Not that the history books show. Though there were two Apollo astronauts named Tom, neither were Majors and both returned home safely (Thomas P. Stafford was on Apollo 10 and Thomas K. Mattingly served aboard Apollo 16).

Bowie's creation of Major Tom was certainly influenced by Stanley Kubrick's 1968 film "2001: A Space Odyssey." Bowie is

said to have written his song shortly after seeing the movie. "Space Oddity" obviously is a pun on "Space Odyssey."

Retrieved from http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1517/was-major-tom-the-astronaut-a-real-person

What did Bowie say about Major Tom? In July of 1969, man landed on the moon. Bowie has this to say about the landing and the movie: “In England, it was always presumed that it [“Space Oddity’] was written about the space

landing, because it kind of came to prominence around the same time. But it actually wasn’t. It was written because of going to see the film 2001, which I found amazing. I was out of my gourd anyway, I was very stoned when I went to see it, several times, and it was really a revelation to me. “It got the song flowing. It was picked up by the British television, and used as the background music for the landing itself. I’m sure they really weren’t listening to the lyric at

all (laughs). It wasn’t a pleasant thing to juxtapose against a moon landing. Of course, I

was overjoyed that they did. Obviously, some BBC official said, ‘Oh, right then, that space

song, Major Tom, blah blah blah, that’ll be great.’ ‘Um, but he gets stranded in space, sir.’

Nobody had the heart to tell the producer that.”

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Retrieved from http://songmango.com/space-oddity-ground-control-major-tom-by-david-bowie-review/

Getting Started!

1. Form 3 groups and discuss the following questions: a) Do you think that David Bowie has influences any other

artists? b) In what way do you think he may have influenced them? c) Are there any artists that you think are similar to David

Bowie? Who? In what way are they similar? 2. Share you answers with the other groups.

Reading Activity

1. Read the article from People’s Magazine 2. Highlight the concepts you consider to be more relevant in

terms of the influence David Bowie had in these artists. 3. Get together with a partner and share your findings. 4. Answer these questions:

a) Are there similar concepts described by the artists? b) Can you think about concepts to classify these

influences?

After reading

1. In groups of 3, make a quick research on the internet about other artists who have been influenced by David Bowie.

2. Create different categories in which you group artist according to the aspect of his life or career that was influenced by David Bowie.

3. Make a short Presentation using Prezi to explain your findings to your classmates.

Unit 3 – Lesson 4

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Reading Activity Text

An Icon of Icons: How David Bowie Influenced Everyone from Madonna to Kanye

It’s easy to forget just how radical the late Bowie was. From pioneering the music video to gender-bending reinvention, Bowie’s legacy lives on in today’s music icons

MADONNA The singer's gift for constant reinvention? No doubt inspired by Bowie, who assumed elaborate personas and alter-egos like Ziggy Stardust, Major Tom, the Thin White Duke and Aladdin Sane. "He was one of the geniuses in the music industry, one of the greatest singer-songwriters in the 20th century," Madonna told a crowd in Houston two days after Bowie's death. "He showed me it was okay to be different."

BOY GEORGE Boy George has long called Bowie his hero, someone he "credits with changing his life." While the artist was too upset to comment on Bowie's passing, he said via his manager: There "would not be Boy George if it wasn't for David Bowie." The late artist played with masculinity and femininity in a way that inspired other artists to embrace gender confusion.

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PRINCE A multi-instrumentalist like Bowie, the two artists embraced being fundamentally, unapologetically different – and finding the art in androgyny.

KANYE WEST Upon hearing of Bowie's death, West tweeted, "David Bowie was one of my most important inspirations, so fearless, so creative, he gave us magic for a lifetime." The rapper's high-concept, revolutionary videos were only ever possible thanks to Bowie's perfection – and subversion – of the medium.

LADY GAGA Gaga's extravagant costuming was unthinkable before Bowie's experiments in fashion and makeup. "Bowie's sonic footprint and fashion influence will echo forever because of the musician's innate desire to express themselves and be free," Atlanta DJ Sir Daniel told NBCBLK. "In today's music market you can have a Lady Gaga and a Young Thug that both speak to their generation through music and fashion and push the envelope with little concern for normative thinking around gender."

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MARILYN MANSON Bowie was a champion of the gender-fluid, non-binary movement, employing dramatic makeup and glitter and flamboyant clothes, assuming identities that didn't fit any one mold. In an editorial for Rolling Stone, Manson wrote that Bowie "confused and captivated" him when he first saw him on TV, and soon became a profound influence. "Every song of his was a way for me to communicate to others," he wrote. "It was a sedative. An arousal. A love letter I never could have written."

LCD SOUNDSYSTEM In March of 2015, the band's former leader, James Murphy, covered Bowie's Station to Station track, "Golden Years." (Murphy even played percussion on two tracks off of Bowie's album, Blackstar.) The artist has long been open about Bowie's influence on his music, having grown up listening to him.

Retrieved from: http://people.com/celebrity/david-bowies-influence-on-other-artists/lcd-soundsystem/

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APPENDIXS

Appendix 1: Questionnaire

Needs Analysis Survey

Male: ____ Female: ____

Instructions:

This chart contains 16 questions regarding the relevance of the topics covered in English lessons in connection to students’ motivation towards learning a second language, with an especial focus on the interest in music and icons.

Mark with an X the option in the boxes that best fits your opinion

Questions 1. Yes 2. Sometimes 3. No

1. Are you interested in the topics covered in your English lessons?

2. Are you motivated to learn English at school?

3. Do you like to talk about art in your English lessons?

4. Do like to listen to music in English?

5. Do you like to watch documentaries or movies about music or musicians?

6. Do you like to read articles, news or books about music or musicians?

7. Have you heard about David Bowie?

8. Does the material used in class promote your understanding of the topic?

9. Do you think that talking about music and artists would be motivating for you?

10. Do you know what the characteristics of an icon are?

11. Do like to listen to music from previous decades?

12. Would you like to learn more about

13. Do think that listening activities are easier to comprehend a topic?

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14. Do you think that oral presentations can help you to improve your English?

15. Do you consider interesting to learn about the life of an iconic artist?

16. Do you consider relevant to learn about the culture of the language you are learning?

35

Appendix 2: Needs analysis results

45%

35%

20%

2. Are you motivated to learn English at school?

1 2 3

75%

20%

5%

4. Do like to listen to music in English?

1 2 3

35%

45%

20%

7. Have you heard about David Bowie?

1 2 3

36

65% 25% 10%

9. Do you think that talking about music and artists would be motivating for you?

1 2 3

30%

40%

30%

10. Do you know what the characteristics of an icon are?

1 2 3

60%

35%

5%

11. Do like to listen to music from previous decades?

1 2 3

37

50%

30%

20%

15. Do you consider interesting to learn about the life of an iconic artist?

1 2 3